Houston family seeks justice in case of alleged police brutality

By Anita Hassan

Published 11:04 pm, Saturday, August 31, 2013

An attorney for a Houston family who claims Harris County deputy constables used excessive force while arresting them vowed Saturday night to seek justice in their case.

"The reason we are having this press conference is to raise awareness," said civil rights attorney Randall Kallinen, who filed a federal law suit on behalf of the Scherz family.

On Sept. 10, 2011, David Braxton Scherz Jr., 26, was stopped outside his home by Harris County Deputy Precinct 4 Constables who alleged that he ran a stop sign. Patrol car footage showed Schderz being kicked by one deputy as another held him down.

Scherz's father, mother, sister and aunt were also arrested after they came outside the house. The felony and misdemeanor charges against the five family members were dismissed last year after prosecutors determined there was not sufficient evidence.

Kallinen showed about 50 people at the press conference photographs of Scherz's bruises and broken ribs, as well as injuries the relatives allegedly suffered at the hands of the deputy constables. He said he who will escalate the case to the U.S. Attorney General's Office, if needed.

"None of them have ever been convicted of a crime in their lives," he said.

Scherz has brought a federal civil rights suit against Harris County and the three deputy constables who arrested him. The family has also filed complaints against the deputies with the Precinct 4 Constable Ron Hickman.

"You wouldn't think this would happen to people like us," said Scherz's mother, Yvonne, a 57-year-old petroleum engineer. "But it did."